Last year, just a couple of weeks before Queens of the Stone Age released their latest album, In Times New Roman…, they hit up the final day of Boston Calling for an early evening set that was both exhilarating and left us starved for more. Now, after almost too long of a wait, the desert rock legends are returning to town Saturday, September 28 at MGM Music Hall at Fenway as the final headlining dates for The End is Nero tour have been announced.
“We’re comin’ to Boston to start a few weeks in the States,” QOTSA keyboardist/guitarist Dean Fertita tells Vanyaland during an exclusive interview last week. “Boston will be the first and that was the second show of this entire tour for the record, so it’ll be nice to do a proper Boston show.”
The MGM Music Hall date will be the first Queens headlining Boston gig since way back in 2017 when the group performed at Agganis Arena. Support will come from The Kills, who brought their God Games tour to Royale this past February. Presale begins Tuesday (June 4) at 10 a.m. with the general on-sale this Friday (June 7) at 10 a.m.
The show comes one day before Queens of the Stone Age play the Soundside Music Festival in Bridgeport, Connecticut on September 29 and while they are in the midst of a seemingly endless run of fests around the world. Beginning this Friday, they’ll perform at Germany’s Rock am Ring and subsequently appear at Download Festival in the United Kingdom, France’s Hellfest, Athensrocks Festival in Greece, Oya Festival in Norway, and over two dozen more through the summer.
Fertita says he’s looking forward to Boston, as well as the other three headlining dates on the fall run which include stops in Cincinnati, Chicago, and Madison, especially after being on the festival circuit. One of the main reasons is to have the freedom to dig a bit deeper into the catalog of the band.
“I don’t want to say we’ve never thought about or cared about that too much, because we always just wanted to play our show – no matter what,” he says. “But I think we’ve been experimenting with that a little bit when we do these festival shows and sort of knowing what people want to hear and what they’re there for and they’ve been standing outside all day, so you kinda are aware when you are writing a set. When we do our own shows, and we know that people have been with us from the start, we can kind of get into some deeper album cuts. Actually, sometimes, the weirder the better.”
Fans can expect the typical Queens of the Stone Age relaxed setlist and audibles to be called depending on the audience, the town, and just how the guys are feeling in general.
“Everything’s a surprise to us the day of the show,” Fertita says. “We move at that speed, like, when things start to feel a little stale or something feels appropriate for the city we’re in or the crowd we’re playing in front of, we kind of change immediately. That idea of always keeping things kinda new for us and people coming to the show…there’s nothing too thought out, but we know we’re gonna do somethin.’”
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Also a part of the garage rock supergroup The Dead Weather, alongside Jack White, Kills frontwoman Alison Mosshart, and Jack Lawrence of The Greenhornes, Fertita has been in Queens of the Stone Age since 2007. He attributes the tight but loose philosophy in the latter to how well this particular lineup is gelling after somewhere around a decade together.
“It’s the best,” he says, noticeably glowing with pride. “I kinda think that’s part of the reason why maybe we’re playing better than we ever have. There’s, like, an understanding. This particular lineup has been together now for over 10 years, so, there’s trust. Everybody just gets to do what they do and we can really listen to each other and anticipate what the other person’s gonna do a little bit better than we could five, 10 years ago. I think it all plays into that – that’s where our strength is.”
And for those who can’t wait until September to get a Queens of the Stone Age fix, later this month will see the reissue of the outfit’s long out-of-print self-titled 1998 debut on vinyl. Set for release on June 21, the 2LP set features three additional tracks, “The Bronze,” “These Aren’t the Droids You’re Looking For,” and “Spiders and Vinegaroons.” It can be purchased directly from the QOTSA store, Matador Records, and local record stores everywhere.
The newly announced The End is Nero headlining dates:
September 28: Boston, MA – MGM Music Hall at Fenway
October 1: Cincinnati, OH – Andrew J Brady Music Center
October 2: Chicago, IL – Bank Pavillion at Northerly Island
Octover 4: Madison, WI – Breese Stevens Field
